The Companion ʿImrān ibn Ḥuṣayn tied up his camel at the gate and went in to see the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ (peace be upon him). A delegation from the tribe of Tamīm was there, and the Prophet offered them good news. They wanted something more practical, and the moment passed.
Then a group from Yemen arrived. They accepted the good news gladly and said: we have come to ask you about the beginning of this whole affair. How did it all start?
The Prophet answered: there was God, and there was nothing other than Him. His Throne was over the water. He wrote everything in the Record, and He created the heavens and the earth. (Bukhari 3191)
At that moment someone shouted: ʿImrān, your camel has run off. He dashed out after it, but it had vanished into the heat haze. Years later he said: by God, I wish I had let the camel go and stayed to hear the rest.
The Yemenis asked the biggest question there is. ʿImrān's regret, honest and a little funny, has kept the story alive ever since.
Judaism
“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Now the earth was unformed and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the spirit of God hovered over the face of the waters. And God said: ‘Let there be light.’ And there was light.”
Genesis 1:1-3 · JPS 1917
The Torah opens with a beginning: “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” Its Hebrew verb bara, create, is used in the Bible only with God as its subject. Jewish thinkers such as Maimonides taught creation out of nothing, while recognising that the text is written to teach, not to give a scientific timeline.
The Jewish prayer Adon Olam begins by praising the Lord “who reigned before any form was created”.
Jews mark new beginnings with a blessing. At the first night of a festival, on tasting the first fruit of a season or wearing something new, they say the Shehecheyanu, thanking God who has kept us alive, sustained us and brought us to this season.
Christianity
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
John 1:1-3 · WEB
Christians share Genesis and add the opening of John's Gospel, which begins with the same words: “In the beginning was the Word”. For Christians the Word is Christ, through whom all things were made.
Christianity also has a famous link with modern cosmology. Georges Lemaître, a Belgian Catholic priest and physicist, proposed in 1927 and 1931 that the universe was expanding from a 'primeval atom', the idea that became the Big Bang. He was careful to keep his science and his faith distinct.
Generations of British children have sung Eleanor Farjeon's hymn “Morning Has Broken” (1931) in school assemblies: each new morning greeted as if it were the first one in Eden.
Islam
“Say (O Muhammad): Travel in the land and see how He originated creation, then Allah bringeth forth the later growth. Lo! Allah is Able to do all things.”
Qur'an 29:20 · Pickthall (1930)
The Qur'an uses the verb yubdiʾu, He begins, several times, usually paired with yuʿīdu, He brings back: “He begins creation, then brings it back” (10:4). It also invites people to look for themselves: “Travel through the land and see how He began creation” (29:20).
Muslims are taught not to read modern physics into these verses. They are a call to wonder, not a scientific forecast.
Same and different
All three faiths teach that God created the universe and was not Himself created. They agree it was a free act, not a necessity. They differ on how God created. Christians speak of creation through the Word, Christ; Jews and Muslims speak of God's command alone. Islam gives that command a single word: when God wills a thing, He says to it kun, “Be!”, and it is (Qur'an 36:82).
families / schoolsFirst thingsAsk everyone to name a 'first': first word, first friend, first day at school. Then ask: what did you need before it could happen? Finish with Genesis 1:1, John 1:1 and Qur'an 85:13.
neighbours / faith groupsDark-sky nightGo somewhere dark and look at the stars together, ideally with a local astronomy society. Remember that the light you see left long ago, and that the oldest light we have found is 13.8 billion years old.
families / faith groupsA blessing for firstsJews say the Shehecheyanu over firsts: the first night of a festival, the first strawberries of summer. Many churches bless new homes and new babies. This month, notice one first in your household, mark it with a short thank-you in your own tradition's words, and talk about why beginnings feel holy.
Episode 1
